After some time had passed, I walked toward the port town together with the recovered Shia-san, Fate-san, and Heart-san.
Strangely, I didn't see a single soul along the road. When I tilted my head in confusion, Heart-san explained that because Fate-san was visiting in her capacity as a Supreme God, she had issued advance orders for the residents to stay inside the town and wait.
Now that I thought about it, Fate-san hadn't asked me for a piggyback ride on the way to town, which was quite unexpected.
We continued walking in silence for a while. As the gate marking the entrance to the town came into view, Fate-san looked up at me.
"Well then, Kai-chan. We're going to have our meeting now. You should take it easy and enjoy some sightseeing... God of Romance."
"Yes. Miyama-sama, please take this."
"What is this?"
"The meeting likely won't conclude today, so I have arranged an inn for you. I've already contacted the Ducal House of Albert, so please plan to stay there tonight."
"O-Oh, I see. Thank you very much."
Heart-san handed me a map showing the location of the inn where I’d be staying. Wait... so the decision for me to stay overnight had been made without my knowledge? Well, I suppose I did want to see the sights in the Hydra Kingdom, so I decided to just roll with it.
"I’m really looking forward to our date after the meeting!" Fate-san chirped.
"Umm... right. Okay."
I didn't remember ever agreeing to such a date, but I knew arguing with Fate-san was an exercise in futility.
With a feeling of quiet resignation, I accepted the map.
"Shall we... go?" Fate-san asked.
"Yes!!" Shia and Heart replied in unison.
My breath hitched. In that instant, the very air around Fate-san shifted.
A sharp, cold pressure radiated from her, like the edge of a honed blade. It was a sensation completely alien to the Fate-san I knew.
While I stood there, stunned, the three of them walked toward the gate.
The guards scrambled to open the doors, and beyond them lay a sea of people that filled my vision.
The crowd had clearly gathered to see Fate-san, the God of Fate. Upon confirming her presence, the mass of people dropped to their knees with an eerie silence, bowing their heads to the ground.
In the midst of that overwhelming spectacle, a group of people in ornate armor—likely an Order of Knights—approached Fate-san and offered a profound, formal salute.
"Welcome, God of Fate-sama. To behold your radiant countenance is the highest of honors..."
"I don't need flattery," she interrupted. "Lead the way. Quickly."
"Y-Yes... Forgive me!!"
Was this really the same person? It felt rude to even think it, but the thought wouldn't leave me.
Her voice was incredibly cold and heavy, brooking no dissent. It carried an absolute, crushing weight that felt like a divine decree. I could have sworn the temperature in the air dropped several degrees with just those few words.
I stood there in a daze, unable to reconcile this figure with the Fate-san I knew, until Shia-san stepped close and whispered to me.
"You really should realize just how special you are."
"Eh?"
"You are permitted to speak with the God of Fate-sama as an equal. You are even allowed to touch her. That is proof that she views your existence as something extraordinary. Don't forget that."
"I... I understand."
With that final word, Shia-san followed after Fate-san.
The meeting was strictly for the gods, so I stayed behind and watched their receding backs until they disappeared into the crowd.
Once they were gone, I began wandering through the town to find my inn at a leisurely pace.
Being a port town, the place was bursting with energy. Wooden stalls were packed tightly together, displaying fish of all shapes and sizes while the cries of vendors echoed through the streets.
I’d never been there myself, but I imagined Tsukiji back in Japan might have looked something like this.
I was soaking in the vibrant, fresh commotion and thinking about finding a snack while I explored when a familiar voice reached my ears.
I turned toward the sound and saw... a blue... blue... fish mascot.
"Get 'em while they're cheap! Freshly caught, fresh fish right here!"
"..."
"Ah, Kaito-san! Perfect timing! How about this? I highly recommend—Oof!?"
Oops. My bad. It was such a suspicious sight that I’d punched her by reflex. Well, whatever. It was just an idiot in a fish costume selling fish in the middle of the street. A hopeless, absolute idiot... In other words, it was Alice.
"Isn't that a bit much!?" she cried.
"What on earth are you doing?"
Exactly what chain of events leads Alice, the owner of a general store in the Kingdom of Sinfonia, to be hawking fish in a mascot costume in a port town in the Hydra Kingdom?
"Ah, for your information, I'm Split Body Alice-chan!" the mascot chirped.
"And for the record, I'm the main body Alice-chan!" a voice said from behind me.
"I’ll ask one more time. What are you doing?"
The idiot in the fish suit struck a ridiculous pose as the familiar masked idiot appeared at my back.
A pincer attack by idiots. Truly a terrifying formation.
"Well, you see, the general store alone isn't enough to cover my gambl—my living expenses, so I'm running a side job with a split body..."
"You definitely just said 'gambling,' didn't you?"
"I-I-Isn't that just your imagination? Anyway, my split bodies are doing business all over the place! Isn't it great to have so many cute Alice-chans running around!?"
"Can I punch you again?"
"Hieee! Please, stop! Side-job Split Body Alice-chan is fragile! She'll pop after a few hits! I know you have a thing for violence, Kaito-san, but please spare her—Ow! Why the main body!?"
I decided to just punch the masked one this time. Seriously, why does she waste her incredible abilities on things like this? And a side job selling fish? Is this really okay for one of the Six Kings?
Feeling a headache coming on, I watched the fish mascot go back to work and addressed the main body.
"So... is it actually selling well?"
"..."
A heavy, tragic silence followed. It was getting painful to even look at her. I was fairly certain the costume was the problem. Why the costume? Where did this obsession come from?
"W-Well, putting that aside... Kaito-san!"
"Yeah?"
"I heard it! Or rather, I've been hearing it! What's this I hear about you going on a date with Fate-san!?"
"Eh? No, that... Fate-san just decided that on her own..."
"I don't care if you date Fate-san, but when are you finally going to take me on that date with the deluxe dinner!? This neglect play has reached its limit!"
"A date... with a deluxe dinner?"
Wait. That sounded familiar. Did I...
—Take me on a date with a deluxe dinner next time. —Sure, I understand.
"Ah..."
The blood drained from my face, and a cold sweat broke out across my back.
Right. I definitely remembered making that promise. Oh no. I had completely forgotten.
"That 'Ah'... You didn't! Kaito-san!?"
"No, well, you see..."
"You forgot! You cast it into the void of oblivion! You just threw it away, thinking 'It's only Alice, so it's fine'!!"
"I-I'm sorry! No, it wasn't because it was you! A lot of things happened after we talked, and it just slipped my mind entirely... I'm so sorry!"
As Alice launched into a furious protest, I bowed my head in a panic.
I’d really stepped in it this time. I had genuinely, 100% forgotten.
Between making that promise and now, I’d been swept up in the situation with Kuro, then there was my reply to Isis-san's confession... with so much going on, the memory had just been erased.
I had no excuse. This was entirely my fault.
"That's so cruel, Kaito-san! I was really looking forward to it! I kept telling myself you were just teasing me by making me wait! To think you just flat-out forgot..."
"I'm really, really sorry!"
"Fine, fine. I see how it is. I'm just a convenient woman to you, Kaito-san..."
"No, that's not it at all..."
"It's just Alice, so it doesn't matter if you break your word, right?"
This was bad. She was well and truly sulking. I mean, I was the one who messed up, so she had every right to be mad, but what was I supposed to do? I had to find a way to fix her mood.
Sweating bullets, I scanned my surroundings. My eyes landed on a large street stall nearby selling grilled fish on skewers. Desperate for any solution, I dashed over, bought one, and thrust it toward Alice.
"Alice, I'm so sorry! Here, take this..."
"Aaaah! Kaito-san!? You think you can just buy my silence with food!? Don't mock me! I'm not going to be swayed by—This is delicious! What is this? It's amazing!"
"Is it? I'm glad you like it... Look, Alice, I'm truly sorry I forgot. To make up for it, you can have as much as you want from that stall. It's on me!"
"As much as I want!? Seriously!? Hmph... Well, I suppose I can't be helped. It's not like you did it on purpose, Kaito-san. And since I’m a big-hearted girl, I might just find it in me to forgive you."
Phew. It looked like she was starting to cheer up. I was saved.
But she still seemed a little unsatisfied. I needed one more push.
"Umm... I promise we'll go on that date very soon. And to make up for the wait, I'll add a deluxe lunch to the deluxe dinner!"
"A deluxe lunch too!? I forgive you! You are completely forgiven!!"
Alice's eyes lit up with a dazzling sparkle, and she nodded her head so fast it was a blur.
It seemed I was in the clear. What a relief.
Dear Mother, Father—This was entirely my blunder today. I completely forgot my promise to Alice, and I feel terrible about it. I managed to earn her forgiveness this time, but I need to make sure this never happens again. From now on, whenever I make a promise, I'll make sure to note it down.
"Go ahead, Alice. Don't be shy, order whatever you want..."
"Thank you! In that case, I'll take three hundred skewers!"
"...Eh?"
"Oh, you have pot-roasted fish too? I'll take fifty of those!"
"............Eh?"
"Sashimi platters? Eighty servings of those, please. And sixty smoked fillets... Oh? What's the chef's recommendation? I'll take forty of those for now..."
"..................Eh?"
Whoops! Here's a little bit of trivia for you! Since Alice-chan is a high-ranking demon, her body breaks down anything she eats at the molecular level and converts it directly into magic power. That means she can eat as much as she wants! And she gets to keep her cute, curvy figure too. Isn't that the best? As expected of Alice-chan!
Grilled Fish Skewers: 5R x 300 = 1,500R Pot-roasted Fish: 10R x 50 = 500R Assorted Sashimi: 15R x 80 = 1,200R Smoked Fillets: 4R x 60 = 240R High-grade Recommended Fish: 30R x 40 = 1,200R
Total: 4,640R (Approximately 464,000 yen)
Alice-chan's smile: Priceless.